The Mets search for a new manager should be shrinking, not expanding. And yet, another qualified candidate has emerged, and he’s a good one…
The Mets, according to the New York Post, have six candidates in line to be considered as the team’s manager in 2020. I find that hard to believe, especially since they threw another hat in the ring yesterday – Eduardo Perez.
First, a disclaimer is in order because I happen to find Perez an engaging, reflective, and outstanding baseball mind. Recently, I trashed an article midway in writing that encouraged his candidacy. But that was because I didn’t want to muddy the water. The Mets have – good for them.
Eduardo Perez is all over the radio and TV airwaves these days as an analyst. There’s a good reason for that – he’s exceptionally good at his current craft.
I make it a point to tune into MLB Sirius XM-Radio’s Morning Show that’s spearheaded by Steve Phillips, the former GM of the New York Mets. Phillips teams up with Perez (generally) three times a week.
They like each other, so that helps the show. But beyond that, Phillips and (especially) Perez offer fresh and incisive insight into the game of baseball as it’s played today.
You get a feeling when you listen to the trove of analysts thrust on us these days. Are they real, or are they a scripted part of “The Show.” Eduardo Perez quickly passes the litmus test as “real.”
The Mets Are Dead-On By Tagging Eduardo Perez
Perez’s resume is thick and comprehensive, and it includes managerial experience, though not in the Major Leagues. In 2008 and 2009, Pérez was the manager of Leones de Ponce in Puerto Rico.
He was named 2008 Manager of the Year in the Puerto Rico Baseball League, leading the team to the league title.
Eduardo Perez has a baseball pedigree as the younger son of baseball Hall of Famer Tony Pérez. His godfather is Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda. He bleeds baseball.
Mentioned before, Perez is a workaholic who flies coast to make appearances on ESPN, MLB-TV, and MLB-Radio – wherever they need him. His energy level would seem to be a walk in the park as manager of the Mets. Checking another box, Perez is fluent in both English and Spanish.
It gets complicated and sometimes confusing when considering the attributes of the candidates on the board. As a latecomer, Perez has some catching up to do. If there is such a thing, Las Vegas favors Joe Girardi as the leader. Nearly all of what I read in New York newspapers echo the same.
Carlos Beltran has scored points by turning down interviews with both the Cubs and Padres, indicating he is not looking to be a manager – he wants to be the manager of the New York Mets.
Very Soon, The Mets Need To Fish Or Cut Bait
But every day, the playing field seems to change, as it has today with the introduction of Perez.
On the one hand, the more the merrier. But as I’ve indicated on numerous occasions, there is a host of other business the Mets need to tend to besides finding a new manager. This can’t go on forever.
We trust that Brodie Van Wagenen is utilizing critical players on his staff to be aggressive on these other fronts. This includes arbitration with nine players and the Zach Wheeler Qualifying Offer decision.
Then, there are decisions about protecting players on the 40-man roster from the upcoming Rule 5 draft, placing preliminary calls to GM’s of teams the Mets have an interest in executing a trade with – and the list goes on.
Saving Eduardo Perez to (what hopefully will be) the end could be a precursor as to how the Mets feel towards him. The team wouldn’t be wrong if they hold Perez in high esteem as a serious candidate to assume the helm of the Mets.
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
